To Forgive a Sinner
by CKhybrid
Summary: She believes anyone capable of love is capable of being saved. That is why Caroline decides to forgive a dying Katherine, who is in love with Stefan. Is the Doppelganger worthy, or is she simply a terrible person who does terrible things?
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own, I am just borrowing for awhile.

_She believes anyone capable of love is capable of being saved. That is why Caroline decides to forgive a dying Katherine, who is in love with Stefan. Is the Doppelganger worthy, or is she simply a terrible person who does terrible things?_

To Forgive a Sinner

The vampire finally opens the door and provides those standing in the hallway with a simple smile accompanied by a nod she hopes is encouraging. Caroline means to do it for their benefit, but realizes she probably needs it just as much upon entering the room. Everyone had been surprised when she first requested a private audience with the dying woman. The blond understood their reactions but also knew this was something she had to do. It was, after all, the right thing. Problem is the right thing is rarely an easy thing. That is why even though Caroline had closed the door behind her, she was hesitating to turn around and face the woman lying in bed.

Caroline knows Katherine is human now. She is too weak to be a physical threat to anyone. 'Not expected to make it through the day' according to Meredith Fell. None of which negates the fact Katherine Pierce is a ruthless bitch responsible for Caroline being dead - at least in human terms. Stefan had agreed to the unusual request and left the bedroom so they could have some privacy. Nadia had been reluctant at first, but the younger Salvatore brother had convinced her to do the same. The girl and Katherine's "friend" did not follow Stefan downstairs however and remained close by. They didn't know much about this "friend", but apparently he had come to be at the Doppelganger's side during her final moments. Bonnie had thought she was picking up on the presence of magic but was too busy processing the concept of Katherine having a friend to ask questions. Everyone else had been too busy drinking and reminiscing to make enquiries.

Caroline finally turns and faces the brunette, whose hair is more or less grey now. It really is astounding the resemblance between the woman and Elena. The pair could be mistaken for identical twins. She has never really thought about it truth be told. Their physical appearance had been where the similarities ended. Whenever dealing with Katherine all she had been able to see was all of the terrible things the Doppelganger had done. The ugly on the inside had made her that way on the outside. Watching her now, holding a bloody cloth to her mouth as she coughed, the blond couldn't help but picture it being Elena in that bed.

"Here to smother me with a pillow?" The woman asks, and then there's no mistaking who this person is. Elena has never been able to joke about death.

"Not really my style. Kind of tacky" Caroline returns flippantly but without any real malice.

Katherine starts to laugh, but the laughter turns into coughing. Caroline stops smiling as the hacking persists for an uncomfortable period of time. When it finally stops, there's silence.

"It would be the humane thing to do." Katherine sighs looking dejectedly at the vampire. Caroline's heart clenches as she remembers being in Katherine's position, waiting to die. _'Celebrate the fact that you're no longer bound by trivial human conventions. You're free.' No_, Katherine was dying.

"Stefan told me you want him to forgive you." No sense in dragging this out. Not with the clock ticking as it were.

"Yes, Stefan tells you a lot of things, doesn't he?" There is bitterness in her tone that Katherine doesn't try to disguise. She probably doesn't like the idea of Stefan talking about her with the blond, but Caroline also suspects she might be jealous.

"He's my best friend." she adds simply as though it needs saying. Maybe it does, given the other woman's face suddenly looking less tense. Though Caroline realizes this idea may be incomprehensible to someone like Katherine. She has no friends, except for the broody looking fellow who suddenly showed up today.

"You say you've never even slept with him." Katherine is shaking her head as she says it. "I don't understand how either of you benefits from that at all." Katherine complains and Caroline sighs. '_You don't connect with people because you don't even try to understand them._'

"I love him." The words fall from her mouth easily but she shakes her head to clear her mind of past memories. She is talking about Stefan. The best friend she could never see as anything else. Human Caroline may have wanted more, but the new Caroline didn't. His friendship meant too much to ever want to jeopardize it. "And he loves me. We'll always be there for one another. That means the world to me." Katherine of course scoffs at this, which Caroline recognizes as a deflective tactic. She uses it herself from time to time to hide her real feelings. She decides to spare Katherine the embarrassment of dealing with her unrequited feelings for Stefan and continues. "While I can't speak for Stefan... I wanted you to know... that I forgive you." Katherine's gaze is penetrating, and Caroline knows she doesn't believe what she is hearing. "Look, I can't forget the horrible things that you've done" because no, she couldn't "or condone them but I guess you felt like you had no other choice. That you didn't have anyone you could turn to." Katherine blows out a breath neither one of them realized she had been holding.

"You forgive me, after everything I've done to you?" Every syllable fell out of her mouth as a pained question coated in both awe and confusion.

"To be fair...becoming a vampire is probably the best thing that ever happened to me." '_You prefer who you are now to the girl you once were._' It was true. "You may not have given me a choice in the matter," she was definitely understating the obvious "but if I knew then what I know now - I would have chosen to be the way I am now."

"What are you trying to do, kill me with kindness?" The Doppelganger asks and Caroline smiles.

"Is it working?" Katherine laughs and the coughing isn't so bad this time.

"You're a good person Caroline." The words catch her off guard and the blond is stunned into silence. "What? You get to be the bigger person and I get to just lay here and die? I can be nice too." Caroline is unsure and her face involuntarily conveys this. "I can be nice!" she repeats. Caroline smiles tightly and places her hand over Katherine's. "I could be." A silence overcomes the room again. The blond doesn't know what else to say.

After some time has passed, Caroline withdraws her hand. She's said all she had to say and there are others who should be sharing in what could be Katherine's last moments. A daughter, the Doppelganger never got the chance to know, waiting patiently. The Doppelganger seems deep in thought when Caroline moves to leave. The Doppelganger moves suddenly and seems to deliberately push a glass of water off the bedside table. Confusion washes over Caroline, an eyebrow rising quizzically at the other woman. She hears the door being pushed open and wants to turn, see who is there, but finds she can not.

The door shuts and Caroline can identify Nadia's voice asking "are you certain mother?" Caroline wants to demand an explanation, but finds speech impossible.

"It's this or I die" Caroline notices Katherine's attention shifting "and you said I will still sound like her, right?"

"Yes." Caroline recognizes the voice belonging to the broody fellow. "Travellers often remain hidden in the host body, because there is no way to take control without revealing themselves. But with the spell I am doing, no one will know the difference between you and the girl. And you're going to want to **stay** in control if you don't want her blabbing what we've done." She's still immobile but feels a shiver run through her body all the same.

"Do it then, before Stefan comes back." Katherine hisses, putting an end to any further discussion. Caroline feels the pressure of strong hands on either side of her head; Katherine's eyes meet hers for the briefest of moments. She thinks she sees the brunette mouth the words "forgive me" - and that's the last conscious thought Caroline Forbes has.


	2. Chapter 2

Previously: Caroline visited a dying Katherine. With no intention of leaving the land of the living, the Doppelganger turned the situation to her advantage. Now, she inhabits the vampire's body.

_Katherine Pierce devised a plan to cheat death. Problem is, being Caroline Forbes is no simple task and, things are about to get complicated._

To Forgive a Sinner (cont')

Standing a top the stairs, she can feel a smirk tugging at the left corner of her mouth. She has, once again, cheated death. Only this time, she would truly be free. As far as her enemies were concerned, Katherine Pierce had perished. No one would suspect the Doppelganger now occupied the body of a young, insignificant, vampire. There would be no imminent threat looming for her to concern herself with. No more need for running. She could pursue the life she had always wanted. With who she wanted. Katherine bites down to keep her glee hidden. This is, after all, supposed to be a sombre occasion.

Trying to mask her emotions, Katherine focuses on the figure of her daughter. The woman is undeniably stunning, of course. Good genes and all that. She is also very strong. It was visible in the way the Bulgarian-born girl carried herself. There was the obvious definition of muscle in her arms and legs. You could tell Nadia was made of tough stuff from just a glimpse of her penetrating gaze. There was a lot her mother could gage from those brown orbs. Some things Katherine didn't even want to acknowledge, but would need to now that she'd been given a second chance. She would try to make up for lost time. She wanted the opportunity to get to know her daughter. Still, irreparable damage had been done and nothing would ever be able to change that.

Nadia and her friend, Kale, walk side by side down the stairs. Her daughter insisted on doing it this way, with Katherine walking behind the two of them. Everyone would hopefully choose to focus on the newcomers and not pay much attention to the familiar blonde.

In truth, the Doppelganger is having much more difficulty inhabiting the vampire's body than anticipated. The best way to explain the floating sensation she was experiencing was to compare the situation to being inside of a balloon. If Caroline was the balloon, then Katherine was the air. She would only become aware of her feet when they were making contact with the floor. Her fingertips were open and weightless until they were grasping something. Involuntary bodily responses, such as blinking, felt like huge, over-exaggerated gestures. It was awkward. It would take some getting use to. It was still preferable to death.

As they neared the bottom of the stairs, everyone gathered turned to look at the trio. Kale was large and mysterious in both appearance and manner. He, therefore, engaged most of their focus, even though no one seemed comfortable with looking him in the eye. He didn't give off the friendliest of vibes. Katherine suddenly wondered just how Nadia and he had met.

"Well?" The excited anticipation of Damon's voice did not go un-noticed. He really was an insensitive prick. She tried not to take it personally.

"Katherine is dead." Her daughter stated, staying relatively composed but acting as though she were holding back tears. She didn't over do it. Nadia was a Petrova, after all. Showing emotion wasn't something they were well known for. The room stayed relatively quiet, which was more than the Doppelganger could have expected. No one present was a particular fan of hers.

Katherine was, however, interested in one vampire's reaction. In trying to spot Stefan her eyes felt as though they might fall out of her head... Caroline's head... whatever. The thought of losing one's eyeballs was disturbing but the sound she heard next was terrifying.

"How unfortunate..." Katherine recognized the voice immediately and froze. He had been sitting on the couch, back facing them as they entered he room. Now he stood facing them and she tried to shrink impossibly further behind Nadia and Kale. Katherine felt like her heart was going to explode. The floating feeling vanished, as a heavy sense of dread encompassed her entirely.

"And just who are you?" Nadia asked, and Katherine cringed at the tone her daughter chose to use.

"Why, I'm the big bad wolf" she couldn't bring herself to make eye contact, but Katherine could hear the smugness in his voice. To think she had once thought him charming was incomprehensible now. "But you may call me Klaus." _He always did have a flare for the dramatic_, she thought bitterly. "And who might you be?" It was less a question and more of a demand.

"Nadia Petrova. Katherine's daughter." The cocky grin he liked so much was suddenly absent from his face.

"Interesting." There was a threat lingering somewhere in that simple yet vague response. Kale's hand shot out to encompass Nadia's wrist, in comfort or in warning it was hard to tell. On instinct, the girl barely turned to look at her mother but it was enough to let the Original Hybrid see her.

"Hello Caroline." She blinked. Right. Caroline. That's who she was now. She wasn't the desperate woman who had been running from this psycho for the last five hundred years. Katherine had nothing to fear. Or did she? He was looking at her with an intensity she couldn't recognize. She could feel the heat from his gaze burn a hole through her. A mass was forming in her stomach. She felt like she might vomit. A swirl of questions was starting to formulate, leaving her feeling dizzy.

"Care..."another presence makes itself known in the form of one Tyler Lockwood. Caroline's EX-boyfriend if she remembers correctly. He looks like a lost puppy as he stands near Klaus. She could literally choke on the tension filling the room. Katherine is very much at a loss for how to respond to the presence of either hybrid. Doing nothing seems a sure way to cause undue suspicion though so she simply waves her hand, trying not to direct it at anyone in particular.

In the middle of an unfamiliar and uncomfortable situation Katherine's need to locate Stefan re-emerges. She spots him leaning against the wall in a very typical Stefan Salvatore fashion - arms crossed in the front, drink in hand; legs crossed and a serious look on his face. Her heart clenches when his eyes meet hers. She needs to go to him. The weightless, floating, feeling returns once again as she automatically makes her way towards the Salvatore.

"Care..." she turns to look at the Lockwood boy, who has started approaching her "can I um, talk to you." He's not saying it like it's a question. He obviously expects her to oblige him.

"Not interested." She practically snarls before remembering it probably isn't a very Caroline-Forbes thing to do. She really means it in every sense of the word though. Katherine painfully recalls her "relationship" with Mason Lockwood. Werewolves were just so damn needy. Tyler's face is the image of shock, hurt and shame. He really wasn't expecting that response. Would it have been **completely** out of character for Caroline to behave this way? The blonde had come a long way from being the insecure girl she had been as a human. Caroline understood her own self worth now, and she wouldn't put up with the disrespect the little wolf boy had shown her before his departure. Perhaps Katherine should try a bit harder to hide her disgust but she would take that into consideration later. Right now she continued making her way towards Stefan.

"Are you okay?" He asks.

Before she can stop it, her arms wrap around him. It may have been out of character, for both her and for Caroline, but she couldn't bring herself to care. She almost died today. Katherine would have left this world having never been able to touch the man she loved ever again. But now, in the form of his best friend, she has every intention of touching him as much and as often as possible. After his initial shock she feels him squeeze back and relax into the embrace. She holds him tight and smiles.

Taking a step back, Katherine looks and notices that his eyes are discreetly watching someone else. Tyler, she assumes. When she turns, though, there are actually two displeased looking hybrids watching them. Curiosity, confusion and fear were only a few of the things she was currently feeling.

"Do you want a drink?" He asks. It's not a matter of want. Katherine Pierce is in desperate **need** of alcohol and an escape from her current reality. One she doesn't comprehend in the least.

"Please." She answers, and Stefan is already guiding her out of the room with an arm placed lightly on her back.

She needs a distraction from the men whose gaze she can still feel on her skin. With Stefan, she hopes to achieve that and more.

*This chapter is dedicated to lolipopasha. Thank you for reviewing!*


	3. Chapter 3

Previously: To escape her own death, Katherine took over Caroline's body. While pretending to be the baby vampire comes with complications the Doppelganger is eager to take advantage of Caroline's friendship with Stefan.

_Stefan wants to cheer up his best friend but doesn't know how. One thing is for certain, alcohol will be involved! _

To Forgive a Sinner (cont')

He hands her a drink and tops off his own. Before he can put the liquor away, Caroline is shoving her emptied glass expectantly towards him. With a quizzical brow Stefan obliges her with more of the amber liquid. She downs it just as fast, her eyes never leaving the bottle he's holding, and motions for more. The vampire clears his throat this time and the blonde looks up, embarrassment flooding her features. Her hand drops and she begins holding the empty tumbler between her fingers disinterestedly. The action suggesting another drink is the furthest thing from her mind.

"Far be it from **me** to comment on your need to _indulge_." He gives her a lopsided grin. This time Stefan is overly generous with the amount he pours for her. Caroline nods her thanks, but holds the glass at a distance to indicate she won't be finishing this one so quickly. He shrugs, slamming his own back. He takes some more for himself and then places the bottle beside them on the kitchen counter.

"So..." they both start simultaneously, making Stefan laugh.

"Ladies first" he insists.

"I was just wondering...how are you doing?" Caroline sounds nervous when she asks him the question.

"How I'm doing?" He asks confused. When Caroline huffs his confusion only grows. She seems a little reluctant to elaborate but does so anyway.

"You know, with Katherine...dying." His only response is a blank stare. "I mean she was the woman you **loved**. And she's dead now. Just curious how you feel about that." He snorts. Caroline gives him an incredulous look and Stefan gets the impression he may have offended her, somehow. He offers up a verbal response to try and satisfy her.

"I'm fine."

"Fine" she seems to hiss back at him. _Okay, that didn't work. Does she think I'm lying to her?_ He wondered._**Am**__ I lying to her?_ As good as he usually is at self reflection; Stefan can't help but wonder what's brought on her line of questioning.

Then he realizes Caroline's doing what she does best, deflecting.

His best friend would often try to draw attention away from her problems by trying to solve someone else's. The blonde vampire didn't want to come across as weak. A concept that was equally ridiculous as it was impossible given she was the strongest person the Salvatore had ever met. Despite whatever was troubling her she still always found a way to keep smiling. She was eternally optimistic and refused to let anyone or anything bring her down.

Stefan could both recognize and appreciate Caroline's desire to stay positive and not dwell on the negative. He wouldn't point out what she was doing but wanted her to know that she could always confide in him. That's how their friendship worked. They were there for each other, no matter what. No judgment. _Well, maybe a little judgment. _Even Caroline Forbes had her flaws.

Caroline hadn't said much to him regarding her break up with Tyler. Elena had filled him in on most of the details. Tyler had shown up only to tell Caroline he planned to leave again. This time, he was going to get "revenge" on Klaus. She told Tyler that if he left her, again, that they were through. Tyler made his choice and Caroline was left heart broken. Now he was back, along with the Original Hybrid. _How'd that plan end up working for ya douchebag? _He'd never really been on board with their relationship. _Speaking of unhealthy..._ Stefan knows the relationship between Caroline and Klaus was, or is, complicated. He'd witnessed Klaus' obsession with her when the three of them went searching for Silas. The Original tried most anything he could think of to try and get the baby vampires attention. '_Don't underestimate the allure of darkness Stefan, even the purest hearts are drawn to it_.' The Original could be a real smug bastard when he wanted to be. He'd pretended to be talking about Elena and Damon despite the fact he had been looking directly at Caroline when he said it. He had also seen the way Caroline responded to him. There was another layer to the hostility Caroline reserved for the Mikaelson. _Yeah, there was definitely something going on there._ _Darkness doesn't attract the light though; it's the other way around _Stefan thought. After all, it hadn't been the evil side of Katherine that had appealed to him.

"I **did** love Katherine but that was a lifetime ago." She's suddenly hanging on to every word he's saying, and he knows she's desperate to talk about anything other than her ex-boyfriend and Original Stalker. He is, however, curious about what happened between her and Katherine upstairs.

"What did you two talk about?"

"Who?"

"Katherine." Caroline reacts like someone just poured a bucket of cold water over her head. Perhaps this is what she didn't want to talk about. She had been the one to bring up Katherine though and Stefan wasn't sure he wanted to visit his feelings on the subject either. "I don't know," he says aloud "I suppose I haven't fully processed the fact she's gone." He doesn't expect her to respond. Polishing off the rest of his alcohol suddenly seems like a very good idea.

"I went to forgive her." He watches her take a sip of her drink and then behave as though she could hide behind the glass.

"Wow."

"Is it really that surprising?" She sips nervously while waiting for his response.

"I suppose it shouldn't be. You, my friend, seem to have the capacity to forgive pretty much anyone." It was true. Caroline's ability to empathise with people was one of the qualities he admired most about her.

"Do you think you could forgive her?" Stefan takes a drink before responding.

"I don't know." He says, looking into his glass, wishing the answer was waiting for him at the bottom. "It doesn't matter now anyways."

"Why not?"

"Well, it's not like I'm going to see her again."

"But what if you did?"

"Caroline..." He means to call her out on her bizarre behaviour but before he gets the chance Damon stumbles into the room effectively disrupting their conversation.

"Blondie, can you PLEASE come out here? The Original BUZZKILL seems intent on staying until he's spoken with his **lady love**." Damon sings the last part and the glass in Caroline's hand shatters. "Or you know...maybe not." Damon acts concerned as he walks towards the blonde, right up until the moment he snatches the bottle of alcohol from in-between her and Stefan.

"Don't you think you've had enough?" Stefan asks.

"One: I'm celebrating." is Damon's first response "Two: Ain't NO WAY I am hanging out with Klaus Mikaelson SOBER. Three: She doesn't get anymore because she dropped hers all over the floor." He's pointing at the blonde with a mock glare as he backs out of the room. "YOU give alcoholics a **bad** name."

The scent of blood hits Stefan and he realizes she's cut her self. "Let me get a cloth" he tells her as he goes to the sink and runs a hand towel under the water. When he turns around she's looking intently at her hand. "The bunny diet." He jokes, rolling his eyes as he picks up her injured hand and cradles it in the cloth.

"Slows the healing process down." She sounds like she just realized something but when he looks up at her she's looking right back. "I knew that." They hold one another's gaze, and suddenly there's a charge in the air. Something familiar and not at the same time. It fizzles when Klaus and Damon are heard arguing in the other room.

"I should probably go talk to him then." She seems uncertain, and Stefan tries to reassure her.

"If you want I can tell him to back off and leave you alone." He opens the cloth, wipes the blood off her hands and checks to make sure everything is all healed up.

"You would, wouldn't you?" There's something akin to amazement in her eyes.

"Of course." He puts the towel down and picks up his glass for a drink before adding "I mean he'd totally kick my ass but, yeah. I would."

"Well, I can't very well let an Original beat up... my best friend, now can I?" She grabs the drink out of Stefan's hand and finishes it. _Liquid courage._

"You don't have to you know."

"Actually, I think I kind of do." She's already walking away from him.

"Care..."

"Stefan?"

"Want to go hunting after?"

"Sure." She smiles at him before adding "it's a date."

Stefan can't help but smile back.


End file.
